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xbox game pass microsoft
Gaming Microsoft

Ori director says Game Pass needs "smash hits," not studios slopping out mediocre content

Thomas Mahler compared Game Pass incentives to communism
A hot potato: Things aren't going well for Xbox right now. With the massive changes, studios closing, and the future of the brand itself being questioned, Game Pass has also found itself under the spotlight. According to the director of the Ori games, the subscription service would be much more successful if studios weren't incentivized to "slop out mediocre content like a factory."
Full story By Rob Thubron, 11 comments
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Tech Culture AI

A $200 ChatGPT subscription could cost OpenAI $14,000 if you actually used it to its full potential

OpenAI starts losing money on ChatGPT Plus once usage tops 11%, Anthropic's Claude is no different
Bottom line: The math behind AI subscriptions is starting to look uncomfortable. Flat monthly pricing helped fuel the rapid adoption of tools like ChatGPT and Claude, but new analysis suggests those fees may not come close to covering the actual cost of heavy use. As users push these systems harder and more demanding AI workflows take hold, the gap between revenue and compute costs is becoming difficult to ignore.
Full story By Skye Jacobs, 30 comments
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The Web Software

Microsoft 365's latest outage is a reminder that the cloud isn't always there

Users report Microsoft 365 "goes down multiple times a year"
Facepalm: Since launching Windows 365 in 2021, Microsoft has aggressively promoted its cloud PC subscription service, some say to the detriment of local computing. However, recent outages have illustrated the new risks that arise when users and businesses offload their software and files to external servers. Is Windows 365 reliable enough to become a pillar of IT?
Full story By Daniel Sims, 7 comments
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Gaming Microsoft

Call of Duty's chart-topping run comes to an end

Bottom line: Amid Microsoft's ambition to turn Game Pass into gaming's dominant business model, one of its most valuable assets is showing signs of strain. Call of Duty, a $35 billion global franchise known for annual billion-dollar releases, appears to be in decline less than two years after Microsoft completed its acquisition of Activision Blizzard.
Full story By Skye Jacobs, 27 comments
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